I reincarnated in game

53 At the Tallwood Inn

The next morning, Judi picked up her cloak and left to meet up with Hugh and Kenneth so they could go down to breakfast together.  She was relieved to see that Hugh was waiting in the hall; Kenneth had overslept a bit and was just finishing getting dressed. 

Hugh saw Judi when she exited her room and waved as he said, “Good morning.  Sorry that we are running a little bit late.  I let Kenneth sleep in a bit longer this morning.  I had heard him moaning and groaning for quite a while after we got to bed before he quieted and finally went to sleep … I figured he must have had another one of his migraines.  It seemed to be a bad one.”   

“Oh, that is not good.  He had been doing so much better lately.  His migraines seemed to be less intense while we were in Aldo,” Judi replied as she walked towards her friend.

When Judi got to where he was standing, Hugh noticed that she looked a little haggard herself.  “Are you OK?” he asked in a voice low enough so Kenneth would not overhear and, perhaps, get worried.

“Yes, I am OK.  I just had a bit of a rough night myself.  I didn’t sleep well,” she said.

Hugh looked at Judi and decided against pursuing the issue further.  He didn’t want to make her rehash whatever it was that had caused her the disquiet.  They made their way to the dining hall and chose a seat at the back of the room. 

Judi’s pulse quickened as she viewed the room where it had all happened in her dream.  She looked quickly to her right and saw both Hugh and Kenneth there … that at least was a comfort because they had not been with her in the nightmare.  She looked around the room.  Unlike in her dream, the room was not crowded.  There were only a few patrons present; nobody paid them any attention as they traversed the room.

As they ate, and chatted amongst themselves, Judi relaxed somewhat.  She didn’t realize that her hood had slipped towards the back of her head. 

Shalana was bringing out some fresh biscuits and had stopped at their table.  While serving her three guests, she had glanced around the table and, in her peripheral vision, had seen Judi’s partially exposed face.  Without saying anything, she finished her service. She made her way across the room to the front desk where she spoke quietly to Aywin; his immediate reaction was to turn and look across the room in Judi’s direction.  Shalana quickly put her hand on his arm to turn his gaze back toward her, and shook her head ‘no’.  She again had a brief, urgent and whispered conversation with the innkeeper … after that, Aywin would look anywhere, except in Judi’s direction.

The whispered conversations, Aywin’s first glance, Shalana’s restraint on her husband’s arm, and then his total avoidance of eye contact did not go unnoticed by Judi.  She realized that she had probably been recognized but the revelation wasn’t even close to the terrible scene in her dream.  Everything and everyone in the dining area were calmly enjoying their breakfast and chatting amongst themselves.  Nobody had risen to challenge her or to accuse ... her reverie was interrupted when Hugh spoke.

“I was thinking that we should send a letter to James and let him know that we arrived safely in Cowson; and also that we are staying here at the Tallwood Inn.  Remember, he did say we should keep him informed of where we were just in case he needs to contact us.  Maybe we could do that after breakfast,” Hugh suggested.

“Sure,” said Judi.  “I saw some paper and writing supplies in my room.  I can write him a quick note which we can take back to the airship station; it can go out with the mail on the next boat to Aldo.”

After breakfast the three companions walked to the airship and dropped off the letter addressed to James.  When they returned, they walked around to the back of the inn to where there were some flower and vegetable gardens.  As they relaxed on one of the wooden benches, Judi turned to the others and said, “I think I might have been recognized by the innkeeper’s wife … I saw her speaking with her husband who then looked over at me right after she had been at our table with the biscuits.”

“Are you OK with that?  What do you want to do?” Hugh asked.

“I know these two.  I don’t think that we have anything to fear.  I was bound to be recognized sooner or later.  I guess it is best to start here where I know the people,” she said. 

After a bit, they strolled past the gardens into the lush fields behind the inn.  It was another beautiful day and the birds were singing in the trees.  Before they knew it, it was getting close to the time for the mid-day meal to be served so they turned around and retraced their steps.

It took a moment for their eyes to adjust as they stepped out of the bright sunshine into the relative darkness of the inn; that was when they literally bumped into Shalana.  “Oh, excuse me,” she said as she turned to see who was behind her.  She was face to face with Judi.

“Judi?  Is that you?  It has been so long since we saw you,” she said.  “Are you well?  Does your mother know you are back?”

Judi replied, “Yes, it is I.  I am well and, no, nobody knows I have come back.  I didn’t want the news that I am back to be common knowledge … at least not for a couple more days.”

“I completely understand.  You can stay here as long as you would like.  We are happy to have you here.  Please let us know if there is anything you want.  Good to see you again, dear,” Shalana said as she patted Judi’s hand then scurried off to oversee the meal service.   

As they sat down at their usual table, Hugh could see that Judi seemed to be a little relieved and figured it was probably because the tension of keeping her return a secret had finally been broken.  Judi visibly relaxed; she thought to herself, “That didn’t go too badly.  She actually seemed happy to see me.  Maybe it won’t be as bad as I thought it would be.”    

The following couple of days were uneventful.  Judi, still wearing her hooded cloak, had given them a tour of the small town close to the inn.  During their walk about town, they had seen a number of shops which boasted the latest fashions for the warm weather.  They entered just to see what was being offered and ended up selecting a few items of clothing which were both fashionable and comfortable to add to their wardrobe.

There were a few times that Judi had caught people looking at her with a vague sense of recognition but nobody had questioned her presence or even approached her in a confrontational manner.  She gradually relaxed a little more and, on several occasions, did not react to replace her hood when it inadvertently slipped off.

On their fourth day at the inn, a messenger arrived at the front desk asking for Judi Smith just after the dining area had been cleared of the breakfast dishes.  Aywin told the young man which room Judi occupied and suggested that if she did not answer, to try the adjoining room.  The messenger followed the instructions and when no response was received at Judi’s door, he knocked on the door to the next room.  Hugh answered his knock.

“Can I help you?” Hugh asked.

“Good morning, sir.  I have a message for Judi Smith; would she be here?” he asked.

Judi heard her name and came to stand by Hugh.  With a slight bow, the man handed Judi a rolled up parchment with a red seal.  He then turned and left.

Judi looked at the document in her hand and stared at it for a few moments.

“That looks official … who is it from?” Hugh asked with curiosity.

Kenneth came over to join the two where they were still standing at the door, “What is it?  What is it?” he asked excitedly.

Judi broke the seal open and unrolled the document.  She read it to herself as she walked over to sit on the bed. 

Hugh and Kenneth could see that Judi had turned very contemplative.  They walked over to where she was sitting and sat down beside her; one on each side.  Judi folded the parchment up and put it in her pocket.  “It is a message from my mother.  She has heard that I have come back to Cowson and she asked me to come and see her,” Judi replied quietly.

“It will be alright.  We will be right there with you,” Hugh assured her.

Judi turned and looked at Hugh.  He could see the anxiety in her eyes.  In a voice only slightly louder than a whisper, she said, “I am not sure I am ready to face her just yet.”